Generally, gas cooktop appliances include a plurality of gas burners mounted to a top surface of the appliance. Multiple burners of differing sizes or shapes may be provided in a single appliance. As a result, a single appliance may accommodate utensils (e.g., pots or pans) of varying sizes. Relatively smaller burners may be configured to support and heat relatively small utensils, while relatively large burners are configured to support and heat relatively large utensils.
Although having burners of varying sizes may allow users to more effectively heat utensils of differing shapes, the placement of the burners may limit the cooking options available. For instance, existing appliances often have a fixed burner configuration. A typical appliance may include a relatively large burner near the front of the appliance for easier access during use. Relatively small burners, by contrast, may be positioned toward the rear of the appliance since the weight and mass of objects placed on the small burners is generally much lower than the weight and mass of objects placed on the larger burners. The objects on the smaller burners can, thus, be moved on or off the burner without undue strain to the user. Nonetheless, some users may not prefer this configuration. As an example, under certain conditions, some users may desire to have the largest burner toward the rear of the appliance and out of the reach of small children. Moreover, a wide-range of additional or alternative burner configurations may be desirable according to the needs of individual users.
Although certain existing appliances provide for some variation in the positioning of their burners, such systems may be unduly complex and burdensome to reposition. In the field of gas burner appliances, burners of different sizes and shapes generally require different configurations for proper operation (e.g., to ensure ignition and supply a desired heat output). Changing the size or location of a burner may require reconfiguring the placement of igniters and accounting for the differences in fuel delivery, among other considerations. It may be difficult for all the necessary considerations to be accounted for in a manner that is both quick and reliable.
Accordingly, a cooktop appliance with features for facilitating changing a burner location and/or size may be desirable. In addition, a cooktop appliance with features for easily and reliably changing burner size would be useful.